Very happy with how this book turned out, but even happier about the reception it received in the community for whom it was produced. With only three people still speaking the language, N|uu, this illustrated 160 page trilingual Nǀuu-Afrikaans-English reader was produced in collaboration with community members to support revitalisation efforts of this highly endangered language. The hard copies of the reader are used in the Nǀuu language classes conducted by Ouma Geelmeid, the youngest of the three Nǀuu-speaking sisters.

The reader features twelve thematic areas with phrases and sentences derived from everyday conversations, as well as games, prayers and songs taught by Ouma Geelmeid. Core cultural terms and basic vocabulary used in the Nǀuu language classes have been compiled in Nǀuu-Afrikaans-English and Afrikaans-Nǀuu-English glossaries. In addition, new Nǀuu language data is available to a wider audience, both academics and other interested parties, through the electronic online copy of the reader. ( available here: https://open.uct.ac.za/handle/11427/17432 )

Juxtaposing this natural wonder of the world and the urban infrastructures of Cape Town, Cartwright references this feature of the Mother City rendering 36 unique moments with simplicity and elegance. From far-away viewpoints to close up, within the city centre and out into the more obscure outskirts of the peninsula, none of the paintings are the perfect postcard image we have come to expect of this beautiful city. Instead the artist investigates angles and toys with perspectives from the rooftops of the more affluent suburbs through to gritty motorways. This showcases an ever-so-slightly familiar Table Mountain and awakens in his audience new stories about what we thought we already knew.

Whilst this mountain acts as a constant visual beacon engrained in the fabric of the city, each of the 36 views of Table Mountain serves to draw our attention to another’s story; other possible narratives of domestic and urban lives. This remarkably beautiful body of work then, despite being devoid of human beings, serves as a metaphor for the varied peoples that live under its shadow, while ironically hinting at what was here before the Cape peninsula was settled, and what will remain long after we are all gone.’

The ‘Community Punching Bags’ or ‘CPBs’ exhibition is an artwork by Johann van der Schijff, in collaboration with art teachers and high school learners from Cape Town and nearby vicinities. The exhibition presents a satirical commentary on South Africa’s obsession with racial classification and underlying xenophobia. Inspired by artwork in which the community plays a central part in its realisation, this project aims to show that issues often not spoken about openly – such as those that deal with violence, ‘the other’, stereotyping, discrimination, racism, xenophobia and human rights – can be addressed in a collaborative and creative way through the making of art.